Celebrating at GoldenEye

Indagare member Holly Parmelee recently traveled to Jamaica where she stayed at the newly revamped and renovated GoldenEye. Here are her impressions.

Just back from Chris Blackwell’s newly revamped resort GoldenEye in Jamaica. Formerly James Bond writer Ian Fleming’s private estate (which can still be rented as a 5-bedroom retreat), Blackwell has recently added several beachfront cottages and lagoon cottages. I went for a girlfriend’s 50th birthday and it was the perfect place to celebrate.

This was a completely different Jamaica than the one I had previously experienced in Montego Bay. The small town of Oracabessa is very much a part of the resort as the staff at GoldenEye encourages you to leave the property and experience the local town. Most of Blackwell’s staff has been with him for years – either at Goldeneye or his other Jamaica properties. The property is hip and very cool. There is great music in the bars and restaurants (Blackwell founded Island Records) and a low-key vibe throughout the resort. No dressing for dinner here.

This is a Jamaica that is still not totally developed with caves, rivers, and waterfalls to be explored. One morning we took a boat to Tacky Falls, which was an incredible adventure of hiking through the rainforest to discover a glorious waterfall right out of Fantasy Island. We encountered no other people on our 30-minute hike and had the waterfall completely to ourselves. The resort has a great watersports team and offer snorkeling, jetskis, paddleboards as well as other planned excursions.

We stayed in the new beachfront cottages which were beautifully done with ikat fabrics and simple white linens. Each villa has a small kitchen, living area, soaking tub, outdoor shower and porch. Those that stayed on the lagoon could tie kayaks and paddleboards right up to their private docks. The beach is beautiful but a bit rocky. The staff is very attentive regularly offering drinks, fruit kabobs and cool towels.

We would gather each morning on one of our porches and drink fabulous Jamaican coffee before strolling over to the beachfront restaurant for breakfast. The food at Goldeneye is superb – something that was not true at other Jamaican resorts where I had stayed. The resort offers two restaurants – the more casual Bizot Bar at the beach and a more formal, romantic restaurant perched high above the ocean. The newly opened spa was heavenly. Serene and peaceful. We all agreed that the masseuses were top notch and offered a nice variety of massage and facial treatments.

Part of what makes GoldenEye so special – it’s seclusion – also makes it a bit difficult to get to. We took a 30-minute helicopter ride from Montego Bay Airport, which was scenic and super easy. The Ian Fleming Airport in Oracabessa opened the week we were there for private and commuter planes. Or you can make the hour and a half drive from Montego Bay. We all agreed it was worth it make the effort to get to this very special place.